Means for the opening of doors, gates, and the like.



D. MARSHALL.

MEANS FOR THE OPENING OF DOORS, GATES, AND THE LIKE. APPLICATION FILED JAIL-26, 1910.

1,076,506. Patented 0ct.21,1913.

v 2 SHEETSSHEET 1.

COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH C0,,WASNINGTDN. u c.

D. MARSHALL.

MEANS FOR THE OPENING OF DOORS, GATES, AND THE LIKE.

APPLICATION FILED JAN.26, 1910.

1,076,506. Patented 061. 21, 1913.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

g f (0| l M WWM DALE MARSHALL, OF CHELTENHAM, ENGLAND.

MEANS FDR'THE OPENING OF DOORS, GATES, AND THE LIKE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 21,1913.

Application filedolanuary 26, 1910. Serial No. 540,223.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, DALE IVIARSHALL, engineer, a subject of the King of England, and resident of 30 VVinchcombe street, Cheltenham, in the county of Gloucester, England, have invented certain new and useful Improved Means for the Opening of Doors, Gates, and the like, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to an improved attachment for doors by means of which they can be opened by the foot; and it consists in the arrangement of a pedal hinged about an axis parallel to the door and adapted to swing in a limited are so as to cause the foot to slip therefrom vertically. By this means no other movements of the foot than the usual step is necessary to unlatch the door.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will appear from the following description and the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 shows the front elevation of one form of my device, as it would appear when fixed to the face of a door. Fig. 2 is an end view of the lower part of the same device. Fig. 3 is a sectional side-view of another part of the device, acting in conjunction with the former, and to be fixed and oper ated on the other side of the door. Fig. 4 is a section taken on line 44 of Fig. 3, and Fig. 5 is a section taken on line 55 of Fig. 4. Fig. 6 is a view in elevation of a modification of the device. Fig. 7 is an alternative means of attachment to the door handle, of one part of the device shown in Figs. 1 to 5.

Like letters of reference indicate similar parts in the several views.

In carrying my invention into practice, as shown in Fig. 1, to the lower part and face of a door D, I attach a longitudinally hinged member F P to serve as a foot-plate, the upward. movement of which member is limit-ed by a stop-plate P, which serves also as a guide for the foot to the fore-part of the hinged member F P and as a guard to prevent scratching of the door face. The foot-plate is of special form intended to prevent undue force being applied to the device and lock parts, as by its downward movement and consequent inclination the foot is forced to slip off, and besides the foot may be applied anywhere throughout its length with equal effect; and I further attach to the door-spindle Z a lever L, and to provide clearance for its free movement between the customary rose-plate and door,

(which rose-plate is generally a fixture) I use a washer W having a slot S accommodating within it the lever L, the said Washer W being thicker than the said lever. These two specially-formed members, the footplate F P and the lever L, I connect by a downwardly extending rod B, so that upon the movement of the hinged member F P the latch mechanism is moved and the catch or bolt L C, withdrawn, as would be the case if the door handle were turned in the usual way. In the rod R, I provide holes K for adjustment to suit the varying heights of door locks. And acting in conjunction with the aforedescribed device and for the purpose of operating it from the opposite or inside of the door I attach to the inside face of door D a bracket B carrying a triggerlever T, as in Figs. 3, 4, and 5, accommodating it within a slot D S made in the door,

and arrange that the end of the said triggerlever T engages a slot V in the connecting rod R, the raising of the trlgger-lever T by I the foot will thereby operate the aforementioned device, and withdraw the catch L C;

.the trigger-lever 'I can be further utilized for pulling open the door.

As a modification of the device shown in Fig. 1 the connecting rod R has at its eX- tremities projections X and F P (see Fig. 6). Upon the upper projection X a tray or any article the operator is carrying may be rested for the purpose of moving the lever L and thereby operating the latch mechanism, and the lower projection F P serves the same purpose as the hinged member F P in Fig. 1.

Instead of attaching the lever to the knob spindle Z, as in Fig. 1 I may use a strap fixing around the handle H similar to that shown in Fig. 7.

Having described my invention, what I claim is 1. In a device of the character described, the combination with a door, of a latch and knob spindle for operating said latch, a lever attached to said spindle abutting against the face of said door, a washer fastened directly to said door provided with a slot within which said lever is arranged, said washer allowing a rose-plate to be fixed thereon being thicker than said lever and its slot being of a size to permit of a swinging movement of said lever, a downwardly extending rod pivot-ally secured to said lever said rod abutting also against the face of said door, and a foot plate connected with said rod, substantially as and for the pur pose specified.

2. In a device of the character described, the combination with a door, of a latch and knob spindle for operating said latch, a lever attached to said spindle abutting against the face of said door, a washer fastened directly to said door provided with a slot within which said lever is arranged, said washer allowing a rose-plate to be fixed thereon being thicker than said lever and its slot being of a size to permit of a swinging movement of said lever, a downwardly extending rod pivotally secured to said lever, said rod abutting also againstthe face of said door, and a foot plate hinged to said door and connected with said rod, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

3. In a device of the character described, the combination with a door, of a latch and knob spindle for operating said latch, a lever attached to said spindle abutting against the face of said door, a washer fastened directly to said door provided with a slot within which said lever is arranged, said washer allowing a rose-plate to be fixed thereon being thicker than said lever and its slot being of a size to permit of a swinging movement of said lever, a downwardly ex tending rod pivotally secured to said lever,

said rod abutting also against the face of said door, and afootplate connected with said rod, said foot plate being hinged to said door so as to swing around a horizon tal axis to permit the foot to slip off when said plat-e is swung into its lowermost position, substantially as and for the purpose specified. v

4. In a device of the character described, the combination with a door, of a latch and knob spindle arranged thereon, a lever attached to said spindle, a washer fastened to said door provided with a slot within which said lever is arranged, said washer being thicker than said lever and its slot being of a size to permit of a swinging movement" of said lever, a downwardly extending rod pivotally secured to said lever, a foot plate connected with said rod, said foot plate being hinged to said door so as to swing around a horizontal axis to permit the foot to slip off when said plate is swung into its lowermost position, and a forwardly inclined plate fastened to the door above said foot plate and forming a stop for the latter, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

Signed at Birmingham, in the county of Gloucester, Great Britain, this 10th day of January, A. D. 1910.

DALE MARSHALL.

Witnesses:

JOHN THOMAS HILL, GEORGE HENRY BENTLY.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of f'atents, Washington, D. 0.1 

